Trump marks his first 100 days in office in campaign mode, focused on grudges and grievances

Joy Malbon breaks down U.S. President Trump's newest executive order, which walks back some of the duties and tariffs on foreign car parts.

WARREN, Mich. — U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday celebrated the 100th day of his second term — yet spent much of his rally marking it in campaign mode, fixated on past grudges and grievances.

He repeatedly mocked his Democratic predecessor, Joe Biden, attacking his mental acuity and even how he appears in a bathing suit. He again uttered the lie that he won the 2020 presidential election. And he attacked polling and news coverage not favorable to him.

And Trump again and again returned to immigration, his signature issue, at the rally that marked his largest political event since returning to the White House — boasting about his administration’s “mass deportation” efforts that have sent arrests for illegal crossings along the U.S.-Mexico border plummeting.

“Removing the invaders is not just a campaign pledge,” Trump said in his 90-minute speech. “It’s my solemn duty as commander-in-chief. I have an obligation to save our country.”

He paused his remarks to play a video of migrants who Trump asserts are gang members arriving at a notorious prison in El Salvador, with rallygoers cheering as images of deportees having their heads shaved were played. And while Michigan has seen unemployment rise since Trump reclaimed the White House, Trump used his speech to defend his administration’s steep tariffs on cars and auto parts — hours after the White House announced it was softening those.

“We’re here tonight in the heartland of our nation to celebrate the most successful first 100 days of any administration in the history of our country,” Trump said, standing before large electronic screens reading “100 Day of Greatness.” He later added: “We’ve just gotten started. You haven’t even seen anything yet.”

His Republican administration’s strict immigration policies have pushed the boundaries of the judiciary, and its protectionist import taxes imposed on America’s trade partners have also sought to reorder a global economy that the U.S. built in the decades after World War II.

Trump has also championed sweeping expansionism, refusing to rule out military intervention in Greenland and Panama, suggesting that American developers could help convert the war-torn Gaza Strip into a Riviera-like resort and even suggesting annexation of Canada. Meanwhile, government-slashing efforts led by billionaire adviser Elon Musk have shaken Washington to its core.

“After a lifetime of unelected bureaucrats stealing your paychecks, attacking your values and trampling your freedoms, we are stopping their gravy train, ending their power trip and telling thousands of corrupt, incompetent and unnecessary deep state bureaucrats, ‘You’re fired!’” Trump said.

Yet only about 4 in 10 Americans approve of how Trump is handling the presidency, and his ratings on the economy and trade are lower than that. Additionally, 46 per cent of U.S. adults approve of Trump’s immigration policies, with about half of Americans saying he has “gone too far” when it comes to deporting immigrants living in the country illegally.

Just 33 per cent of Americans, meanwhile, have a favorable view of Musk, the Tesla CEO and the world’s richest person, and about half believe the administration has gone too far in working to pare back the government workforce.

“The bottom line for the first hundred days is, lots of damage being done to the fundamentals of our government,” said Max Stier, founding president and CEO of the Partnership for Public Service, a nonprofit dedicated to better government.

Typically, presidents use the 100-day mark to launch multiple rallies. But Trump is doing only the Michigan stop.

Administration officials say Trump is at his most effective when staying at the White House, having meetings and speaking to reporters nearly every day. Indeed, the speech in Macomb County was one of the few large political crowds he’s addressed since Inauguration Day on Jan. 20.

The exceptions have been flying most weekends to golf in Florida or attend sporting events, including the Super Bowl and the Daytona 500. The limited travel to see supporters is a major departure from his first term, when Trump held a series of rallies before celebrating 100 days in office with a Pennsylvania speech in 2017.

Michigan was one of the battleground states Trump flipped in 2024 from the Democratic column. But it’s also been deeply affected by his tariffs, including on new imported cars and auto parts.

Automaker Stellantis halted production at plants in Canada and Mexico after Trump announced a 25 per cent tariff on imported vehicles, temporarily laying off 900 U.S. employees. Industry groups have separately urged the White House to scrap plans for tariffs on imported auto parts, warning that doing so would raise prices on cars and could trigger “layoffs and bankruptcy.”

That seemingly would make the state an odd choice for Trump to hail his accomplishments.

Luis Guevara, of Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan, said outside Trump’s rally that he’s “cautiously optimistic” about Trump’s first 100 days in office but noted that change can be hard.

“We don’t look at our 401(k) or our portfolio on a daily, weekly, monthly basis or even year to year. I think the market is very skittish,” Guevara said. “Now is certainly not the time to mimic the market and be skittish. I think we have to hold tight. It’s going to be a rough ride. Change is difficult for a lot of people.”

Earlier Tuesday, Trump issued an executive order relaxing some of his tariffs on cars and auto parts. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the goal remained enabling automakers to create more domestic manufacturing jobs, noting Trump is concerned with “jobs of the future, not of the past.”

Carolyn Martz, of Royal Oak, Michigan, said outside the Trump rally that she supports the president’s tariffs. She said her husband is an auto technician and has noted how parts come from China and elsewhere overseas.

“I’d like to see more stuff made in America, by Americans, for Americans,” Martz said, adding that tariffs could stimulate U.S. manufacturing.

“If we have to eat more in the beginning with higher prices, that might just be part of it,” she said.

Michigan will be important for Republicans in 2026 as their party tries to pick up a Senate seat in the state for the first time in decades and regain control of the governor’s office, with Gov. Gretchen Whitmer term-limited. Multiple competitive House races will also be on the midterm ballot, along with control of the state legislature.

Though she can’t run again for the governor’s mansion, Whitmer remains in the spotlight as a potential future Democratic presidential candidate. Long a Trump critic, Whitmer has sought to find common ground with the president lately, appearing with Trump at Selfridge Air National Guard Base earlier Tuesday to announce a new fighter jet mission in the economically valuable base.

Kim reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Michelle L. Price in Washington and Patrick Aftoora-Orsagos in Warren, Mich., contributed to this report.